Around the world, pangolins are hunted wherever they are found. There are eight pangolin species, found throughout Asia and Africa.
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Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), all commercial trade of pangolins has been illegal since January 2017. CITES has been ratified by almost every country in the world.
However, statistics show that this ban has not stopped pangolin trafficking. In fact, seizure numbers have increased dramatically.
101,166
Pangolin seized jan 2009 - dec 2016
240,558
Pangolin seized jan 2017 - aug 2019
In African countries, pangolins are usually consumed as bushmeat, but its scales are now being smuggled out of the country by businessmen, often Chinese nationals.
Scales are either exported via container ships or air freight. Sometimes, they are smuggled out on commercial flights too.
In South Asia, pangolins are usually smuggled over land, usually passing through Myanmar before heading towards China.
In Southeast Asia, live pangolins usually originate from Indonesia or Malaysia, transiting in countries along the way to China.
The overwhelming demand for pangolins is from China, where buying power is high and there is a cultural heritage of pangolin consumption.
Around the world, pangolins are hunted wherever they are found. There are eight pangolin species, found throughout Asia and Africa.
Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), all commercial trade of pangolins has been illegal since January 2017. CITES has been ratified by almost every country in the world.
However, statistics show that this ban has not stopped pangolin trafficking. In fact, seizure numbers have increased dramatically.
101,166
Pangolin seized jan 2009 - dec 2016
However, statistics show that this ban has not stopped pangolin trafficking. In fact, seizure numbers have increased dramatically.
240,558
Pangolin seized jan 2017 - aug 2019
In African countries, pangolins are usually consumed as bushmeat, but its scales are now being smuggled out of the country by businessmen, often Chinese nationals.
Scales are either exported via container ships or air freight. Sometimes, they are smuggled out on commercial flights too.
In South Asia, pangolins are usually smuggled over land, usually passing through Myanmar before heading towards China.
In Southeast Asia, live pangolins usually originate from Indonesia or Malaysia, transiting in countries along the way to China.
The overwhelming demand for pangolins is from China, where buying power is high and there is a cultural heritage of pangolin consumption.
